04 October 2011

2011 MLB Postseason: Will the Rangers Close Out the Rays on Tuesday?

The Texas Rangers are now one game away from the American League Championship Series as they took a 2-1 series lead over the Tampa Bay Rays today by winning 4-3 today at Tropicana Field after catcher Mike Napoli hit a big two-run homer in the seventh to give Texas a lead they would never relinquish. So will the Rangers clinch their second straight ALCS berth on Tuesday or will the series return to Arlington?The Rangers right now have all the momentum, having won two in a row and their offense seems to be clicking at the right time. The aforementioned Napoli home run, Josh Hamilton's single scoring two, the Rangers are getting the clutch hits and are capitalizing on runners in scoring position. They've got Matt Harrison on the hill in game 3 and he's had a solid year and you would think the Rangers would have this all locked up.
But this Rays club has lived on the edge all year and made that epic comeback when they appeared to be dead. I think rookie Jeremy Hellickson will have a strong start, the bats will click and I think this series will head back to Arlington for a decisive fifth game.